He did it!!!

HE DID IT!!!!

Yay!!!  Drew completed his chart for sleeping in his bed!  Not that he ever slept with us.  Nope.  He was a couch sleeper.  He always wanted to stay on the couch and sleep.
One night, his dad carried him into his room after he fell asleep on the couch and he stayed the entire night.  Before he woke up I created a chart to encourage him to continue to sleep in his bed and BOY DID IT EVER WORK!!!!  He sleeps in his room with no prompting from us...and yes, he wanted to fill up that chart! Oh the power of charts (and stickers)! Every morning it was "let's put a sticker on my chart."  Yippee!  So we rewarded him with a well-deserved trip to Chuck E. Cheese.

And he was glad his Dad was able to go with him to celebrate!

And Chuck E Cheese even made an appearance!!  Can it get any better?

Why yes it can...TICKETS!!!

and he even thought of his sister when he turned in his tickets!  One sweetheart of a boy!  Way to go Drew!

We are currently working on another chart with a different objective and so far it's working.  It may take a little longer to reach but the chart system has had an impact!!!

I'm Back

Oh blog how you haunt me!  I lie awake at night thinking why oh why didn't I make time to post.
Doesn't Pioneer Woman say BLOG OFTEN in her Ten Things I've Learned About Blogging?
Isn't that why I started this blog to begin with?  Don't I really want remember every thing this family of four has done?  Yes, oh yes I do!!!
But this mama has been busy.  I mean BUSY.  Like I'm just now starting to recover from the month of March and it's still not over!  There has been SO MUCH going on I can barely see straight.
So I'm going to recap and try to catch up.  If you're not into long posts then I suggest you close it out now and move on with your day.  Because I've got a lot to catch up on...and I'll try not to let it happen again...well, I did say TRY.  Here goes and thanks for checking back...We are still here.

Birthday Party #1 for Kate.  She turned five.  How special!  My girl is FIVE.  I can't believe it.  I about cried the whole day...I looked at pictures when she was born and the experience that followed.  Crazy.  I could write a whole post on that some day and I probably will.  But not now cause I've got a lot of catching up to do.

This was our family party.  We've had family parties every year...even the day she was brought home we had a party.  I guess you could say we like parties!  hehe

She LOVES RAPUNZEL so this was a gift from mom and dad...huge hit!

She is my precious princess!!!

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Then there was her very first FRIEND birthday party.  Huge success.  I think fifteen friends in all.  Yay!

We had it at a jump house in the mall.  The kids loved it!

and my sister #2 and #3 were there to help (thank you guys)!

Yay FIVE!!!!

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Then it was Drew's time to shine!  His very first basketball banquet to celebrate his participation in the sport!  Awesome!  He was soooo excited.  I mean so excited to get a trophy! 

His two coaches...handing him the trophy and announcing.

Proud mama I am.

Currently on his shelf and he shows everyone who stops by.

Way to go Drew!  You are a great basketball player!

Dad, Mom, and Kate are soooo proud of you!

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Next Mardi Gras at Kate's school.  I decided to make her a mask to show her friends at school and with her help, it turned out great!!  I found the idea online but of course I can't find where now.  Boo!  See what happens when you don't keep up with blogging!

I used materials I had on hand and free handed the actual mask.  The feathers are made from silk flowers I had.  Kate loved it and I made Drew one, too minus the feathers because I only had pink flowers.

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In the middle of all these activities I also have been trying some of Pioneer Woman's recipes. 

Pinto Beans.  How hard can it be, right?  I can never get mine soupy or tasty enough.  So, yes I followed PW's directions to the tee and boy, oh boy...yummy!  Not that you need it, but you can find her recipe here.

Meatloaf.  So good.  Didn't get an after pic because well, we devoured it.  I mean not the first day...but it was gone by the second day!  Tre Bon!  Recipe here.

Sour Cream Noodle Bake.  Steve loved it.  Says I'm stepping up my game.  I love that man and thank you pioneer woman for keeping my husband full and happy.  Recipe here.

I fixed another recipe (twice) but forgot the picture.  It just smelled and tasted too good to stop and take a picture...seriously that good.  I am definitely making it again and I think I can make myself stop and take a pic before it's gone...hehe.

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For two weeks Kate talked about a having a rock star party.  Huh?  Ok.  What's a rock star party and what does it take to have one?  Microphones, rock star outfit and music.  Ok, sounded simple enough.  We went for it.  We invited cousin Karlee and  turned up the volume.  Kiddos had a great time!

Yep, I got the cookie because well dang it, I love those icing filled things.  And it didn't disappoint.  Delicious!

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And of course we can't forget about Super Moon...spectacular!

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and then sister number three and I headed to Jeffersonville, OH for some prime outlet mall shopping and I bought my first Coach purse...80% off...bar-gain!

Yep, we had a trunk full of bags.  So many good deals.  Love going there and hope to go again soon!

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Can't forget about the hail storm...the kiddos loved it.  First time for them...

Oh yeah...we dog sat for my niece Brittney.  We LOVE that dog.  Best dog ever.  and so much fun.  Loves to play.  We are seriously considering getting a puppy for them.  I think I could handle it now...I think!

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We took the kids, along with Pa Pa and Uncle John, to a high school basketball tournament.   What memories that brought back. Drew and Kate both enjoyed it but I think Daddy and PaPa enjoyed seeing them enjoy more. Good family times!

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That about wraps up our March.  Except a weekend trip to a state park with sister #2 where I didn't take one picture and a birthday party for Kate's friend with no pics.  See I told you I was a busy mama.  But, I'm going to really try to keep up with my blogging.  It's too important to me not to...and because PW says I should! ;-)

two day weekend?

Two day weekends are rare for us because Steve works on Saturdays.  But Monday was a recognized holiday so he was off two days in a row!!!  On Sunday we hung around the house all day.  No plans.  No rush to get anywhere.  Just played, crafted and watched some tv and fixed dinner.  Monday a lot of the same thing.  It felt good to be lazy.  Steve (thankfully) did all the laundry while I kept the kids busy.  Kate decided late afternoon she wanted a sonic slush so we headed out to happy hour.  Total $1.31.  That'll definitely make ya happy!
Then Steve asked if we could get a sitter and go see a movie.  Sounded great!  So we called sister #2 and she was game.  We saw Just Go With It with Adam Sandler and Jennifer Anniston.  Pee your pants funny.  We laughed the entire movie.  Not just snip-its.  The entire movie was hilarious and I recognized not one curse word in the whole movie.  Thanks Mr. Sandler.
Today it's back to the routine.  Drew and I will take Kate to preschool but I think sister #3 might help us go run some errands.  Enjoy your day!

Just Dance

We headed over to Steve's sister's house last night and played some Wii Just Dance.  We all danced to some grooving music and got a workout!!!  LOADS of fun and great company, too!

setting up and explaining the game

and the booty shaking begins!

getting down!!!

steve was "rolling on the river"

Super fun for kids and adults alike.  Good times!!! 

We're still celebrating Valentines this week.  Kate has been crafting like crazy and last night Drew was in the mood to "bake" so we whipped up some delicious pink heart-shaped rice crispy treats.  Drew thought it was magic! hehe

The nice weather is continuing outside...high 70 today!  Kate has gymnastics today then home for three days!  Yippee!
I had a conversation with Steve last night discussing how today will mark twenty-nine years since my mom passed away.  He said that seems like a lifetime.  But the memories are still there...good ones.  Although I was only eleven, I can still remember a lot of things about my mom.  I sure do miss her especially since I've had my kiddos.  Rest in peace Nancy Jo.

Enjoy your weekend!

gorgeous February weather

We are having some gorgeous February weather this week.  Yesterday it was 67 degrees and today is supposed to hit near the same!  After Kate's school conference yesterday, Steve and I took the kiddos to the Capitol to ride bikes. 

Then we went to playground in our old neighborhood.  We were there two hours!  Yep, Cabin Fever.  It was a GREAT day.  We'll probably do much of the same today.  We are ready...Bring on Spring!

These kids love tree climbing.

And last night's dinner:  Homemade burritos!

Yumm-o!!  Adding to our bi-weekly menu! :-)



Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day!  We bought the kiddos the usual...a balloon, a card and some heart-shaped candy.  They always love it.  I know before too long they will outgrow it so we try to make it a little special for them while they are little.  I'm going to try and make heart-shaped burgers for dinner...we've already had the heart-shaped pizza from Hussons Pizza and the kids WENT CRAZY over it...thought it was the coolest thing ever!  So funny!
Kate is having a Valentine party at school and I'm in charge of the regular snack...not to be confused with the sweet snack. Ha!  Cheeze-itz it is.  I could not think of a pink or red healthy snack (or one that Kate liked).  Now if I was in charge of the sweet snack...loads of ideas.
Steve, sister #2, and myself worked on Kate's valentines for her friends yesterday.  I found the idea here.  I love the way they turned out and a BIG THANK YOU to Steve for his Photoshop expertise and sister #2 for taking the awesome picture!

Kate decided she wanted to send both the Hallmark princess valentines and the homemade one.  No problem.  We enveloped both together and they are ready to go.

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On a sadder note, today marks the one year anniversary we lost our dad.  In remembrance, I will be watching an episode of Friends and Everybody Loves Raymond...his two favorite shows ever.  From 7pm-8pm every evening you could find him tuned in laughing like crazy.  I can still hear him laughing at all those jokes. All year I've felt kind of lost without him.  I never really realized how much I depended on him for advice...on everything!  Thankfully, I have four AMAZING sisters and a WONDERFUL brother who have helped me get through.  Miss you very much daddy.  You were the BEST!